view all news, press, & insights

The Grand Chess Tour Returns In 2023

The Grand Chess Tour Returns In 2023

The World’s Elite Grandmasters Will Compete for a $1.4M Purse

in Five Over The Board Events During the 2023 Season



Saint Louis, MO (Monday, January 9, 2023) The Grand Chess Tour (GCT), a circuit of international events, each demonstrating the highest level of organization for the world’s best players, will return again in 2023. Tour participants will compete for a total prize fund of $1.4 million over the course of the 2023 season. The prize money for each of the two classical tournaments will be $350,000 and $175,000 per event for rapid and blitz. In addition, a bonus prize fund totalling $175,000 will be awarded to the top three overall tour finishers.

The 2023 tour will include eight full tour players and additional wildcards will be selected for each tournament. The Superbet Chess Classic will kick off the 2023 tour in Bucharest, Romania and the Sinquefield Cup will close out the tour from November – December in Saint Louis, Missouri, USA.

Between the two classical events are three rapid and blitz events scheduled to be Warsaw, Poland, Zagreb, Croatia and Saint Louis, USA.

The major sponsors of the 2023 Grand Chess Tour are Superbet Foundation, SuperUnited, and Saint Louis Chess Club.



2023 Grand Chess Tour

Tournament Name

Tournament Date

Tournament Location

Superbet Chess Classic Romania

May 4 – May 16

Bucharest, Romania

Superbet Rapid & Blitz Poland

May 19 – May 26

Warsaw, Poland

Super United Rapid & Blitz Croatia

July 3 – July 10

Zagreb, Croatia

Saint Louis Rapid & Blitz

November 12 – November 19

Saint Louis, USA

Sinquefield Cup

November 19 – December 3

Saint Louis, USA

“Fans can expect another exciting year of classical and rapid and blitz tournaments among the world’s best chess players,” said GCT Executive Director Michael Khodarkovsky.

The full format and list of full tour players and wildcards of the 2023 Grand Chess Tour will be announced soon. Please visit grandchesstour.org and follow GCT social media for more information and all the latest news regarding the tour.

2023 Grand Chess Tour Major Sponsors

About the Grand Chess Tour

The Grand Chess Tour is a circuit of international events, each demonstrating the highest level of organization for the world’s best players. The legendary Garry Kasparov, one of the world’s greatest ambassadors for chess, inspired the Grand Chess Tour and helped solidify the partnership between the organizers. All Grand Chess Tour 2023 events will comply with local and regional COVID-19 restrictions. For more information about the tour, please visit grandchesstour.org.

About the Superbet Foundation

Founded in 2019, Superbet Foundation is a nonprofit organization. Its role is to coordinate Superbet Group’s CSR activities and to connect with civil society organizations and the general public. Through its activity, the Foundation strives for a better world, with healthy and educated people and by supporting various projects it wants to inspire people to hold unbreakable moral values. It supports projects in domains like education, health, culture, performance in sport and, most notably, in chess. Since 2019, chess has become one of the backbones of Superbet Foundation by organizing its first tournament of the Grand Chess Tour in Bucharest. The Foundation is committed to turning GCT tournaments into a tradition for the Romanian and Polish chess communities. For more information, visit superchess.ro.

About the Saint Louis Chess Club

The Saint Louis Chess Club is a non-profit, 501(c)(3) organization that is committed to making chess an important part of our community. In addition to providing a forum for the community to play tournaments and casual games, the club also offers chess improvement classes, beginner lessons and special lectures.

Recognizing the cognitive and behavioral benefits of chess, the Saint Louis Chess Club is committed to supporting those chess programs that already exist in area schools while encouraging the development of new in-school and after-school programs. For more information, visit saintlouischessclub.org.

view all news, press, & insights

Saint Louis Chess Club Announces Expansion Plans

30,000-square foot investment solidifies Saint Louis as America’s Chess Capital

 

Updated May 6, 2024

The Saint Louis Chess Club is officially expanding its world-class facility in the St Louis Central West End neighborhood. The St Louis Chess Campus will now operate in a 30,000-square foot area, encompassing a larger Chess Club and Kingside Diner, adjacent to the existing Saint Louis Chess Club facility at the intersection of Maryland and Euclid Avenues. The expansion will allow the Saint Louis Chess Club to amplify their community efforts and further their commitment to the chess industry.

Read the construction press release announcement here and our recent letter to the Central West Neighborhood here.

Saint Louis Chess Club Grand Reopening - Interior - Level 01 Restaurant Corner View

The 30,000 square foot expansion and upgraded facility will feature new ground level classrooms supporting players of all ages, as well as expanded tournament and community gathering spaces with state-of-the-art technology. Accessibility upgrades, including a new 3 story elevator, will provide access for all participants and allow for even greater community engagement. The expansion will also include an improved video production studio for staff and professional players to live stream from the Saint Louis Chess Club on Twitch.tv, YouTube, and other social media platforms.

Once the expansion is completed it will allow the Saint Louis Chess Club to hold larger community events and tournaments, attracting more chess fans to the city of Saint Louis and the nation’s chess capital.

The Saint Louis Chess Club is working with a variety of St Louis-based firms who have all been long-standing partners of the organization, including HOK, a global design, architecture, engineering, and planning firm; Arcturis, an interior design firm that has grown into a multi-disciplinary studio of architects, graphic designers, interior designers, landscape architects, planners, and strategists; MAC Properties, a property group who builds, renovates and manages great apartments and takes pride in caring for their properties and their residents in Chicago, St Louis, and Kansas City; and Pinnacle Contracting, a premier general contractor in the Missouri construction community. Partners are already underway with construction and blueprints for the expansion.

web 3d vray render - 2025 Saint Louis Chess Club Grand Reopening - Interior - Level 01 Reception View
Saint Louis Chess Club Grand Reopening - Interior - Level 01 Restaurant Corner View
Saint Louis Chess Club Grand Reopening - Interior - Level 01 Restaurant Bar Elevation View
Saint Louis Chess Club Grand Reopening - Interior - Level 01 Brennan's Looking South
Saint Louis Chess Club Grand Reopening - Interior - Level 02 Brennan's Looking South
Saint Louis Chess Club Grand Reopening - Interior - Level 02 Chess Club Looking North
view all news, press, & insights

2014 Sinquefield Cup Will Be Strongest Chess Tournament in History

GMs Hikarua Nakamura, Levon Aronian and World Champion Magnus Carlsen will return for the 2014 Sinquefield Cup.

SAINT LOUIS (July 29, 2014) — The 2014 Sinquefield Cup will be the highest-rated tournament in the history of chess, bringing six of the world’s top-nine Grandmasters together at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis.

Last year, the inaugural super-tournament thrilled spectators as the strongest chess competition ever held on U.S. soil. For its 2014 encore, beginning August 27 to September 7, the tournament will be the strongest ever held on earth, its six players averaging a historical peak FIDE rating of 2802.

World Champion Magnus Carlsen, winner of the 2013 Sinquefield Cup, will return to defend his title against an expanded field. This year’s prestigious event will award $100,000 to its winner, part of a $315,000 total prize fund.

Returning with Carlsen is Armenia’s Levon Aronian and the United States’ Hikaru Nakamura, respectively the World’s No. 2 and No. 5 players. New challengers to the Sinquefield Cup include Italy’s Fabiano Caruana, Bulgaria’s Veselin Topalov and France’s Maxime Vachier-Lagrave.

World RankNameAgeCountryRating
No. 1Magnus Carlsen23Norway2877
No. 2Levon Aronian31Armenia2805
No. 3Fabiano Caruana22Italy2801
No. 5Hikaru Nakamura26U.S.A2787
No. 8Veselin Topalov39Bulgaria2772
No. 9Maxime Vachier-Lagrave23France2768

The 2014 Sinquefield Cup will be a six-player, double round-robin tournament, and will be followed by a bonus event titled “Ultimate Moves” to be held through Tuesday, September 9. Ultimate Moves will feature eight teams made up of a GM and an amateur player, where teammates alternate moves. Other special events for spectators are planned, and more details will be released through www.USChessChamps.com.

The 2014 Sinquefield Cup will feature live play-by-play and analysis from three different teams of grandmaster commentators. Online viewers worldwide will enjoy the daily live commentary stream hosted by the legendary team of GMs Yasser Seirawan and Maurice Ashley, as well as WGM Jennifer Shahade, on www.USChessChamps.com. Live spectators will have two additional options of GM-led commentary, both at the World Chess Hall of Fame and Lester’s Restaurant on the Central West End chess campus. A free meet-and-greet autograph session with the players will also be held before the tournament on Tuesday, August 26 at noon.

As a special compliment to the Sinquefield Cup, the WCHOF is presenting a brand-new exhibit titled A Memorable Life: A Glimpse into the Complex Mind of Bobby Fischer, featuring a rare collection of items that celebrate one of the best American chess players in history, and one of the best chess players ever.

Tickets to the 2014 Sinquefield Cup start at $15 per round, but discounted ticket packages are available at $65 for five rounds or $100 for all ten rounds of the event. For more information on the event, including the full schedule, ticket information and lodging details, visit www.USChessChamps.com.

view all news, press, & insights

Sinquefield Cup offers unparalleled spectator experience

Will feature 3 GM commentary teams and free autograph session with players


Maurice Ashley interviews Gata Kamsky after Kamsky won the 2013 U.S. Championship. Ashley will join Jennifer Shahade and Yasser Seirawan once again for live commentary of the 2013 Sinquefield Cup.


SAINT LOUIS (August 12, 2013) — The 2013 Sinquefield Cup will offer live spectators a bevy of options come September.

The tournament, which features GMs Magnus Carlsen and Levon Aronian (top two in the World) and GMs Hikaru Nakamura and Gata Kamsky (top two in the U.S.) takes place September 9-15 at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis (CCSCSL).

There also will be a special meet-and-greet autograph session on Sunday, September 8, from Noon to 1:30 p.m., where spectators will have the opportunity to get autographs from and take pictures with the players. This event is free, and fans will be admitted on a first-come, first-served basis.

Round one of the tournament begins at 1 p.m. CT on September 9.

Three different grandmaster commentary teams will be on site to offer live play-by-play and analysis of each round of this historic tournament.

Following their groundbreaking live commentary of the 2013 U.S. Championships, GMs Yasser Seirawan and Maurice Ashley will once again join WGM Jennifer Shahade on a closed set that will broadcast to thousands of viewers online via www.uschesschamps.com.

Two other teams (comprised of GMs Varuzhan Akobian, Ben Finegold, Ronen Har-Zvi and one additional commentator TBD) also will be conducting commentary for live audiences at Lester’s Restaurant (connected to the CCSCSL) and the World Chess Hall of Fame (across the street from the CCSCSL).

Tony Rich, the executive director of the CCSCSL, said additional commentary teams will create a dynamic and engaging spectator experience.

“We wanted to offer a variety of options to ensure a positive experience for club members and visitors alike.” he said.

Event spectators will have the option to observe the players in the tournament playing hall, listen to the live streaming online commentary in a special viewing area at the Chess Club, or sit in on either of the live audience broadcasts. Tickets for individual rounds cost just $15 and also include food and beverage. Click here to purchase tickets or to view ticket package information.

In addition, the World Chess Hall of Fame will present a preview of their upcoming exhibit Jacqueline Piatigorsky: Patron, Player, Pioneer on the first floor gallery alongside the live GM commentary. The exhibition will be on view from September 4-15 and will include artifacts related to the 1963 and 1966 Piatigorsky Cup tournaments, two of the strongest chess competitions to be held in the U.S. These events attracted top grandmasters from around the world, including Boris Spassky, Bobby Fischer, Tigran Petrosian and Paul Keres.

The Sinquefield Cup marks Carlsen’s first-ever high-profile tournament in the United States. The event, a four-player, double round robin, features a $170,000 prize fund and an average FIDE rating just under 2800, making it the strongest tournament in the history of the U.S.

The event is named after the founders of the CCSCSL, Jeanne and Rex Sinquefield. The Sinquefields were each honored by the U.S. Chess Federation with a Gold Koltanowski award in 2012, with Rex also earning the distinction in 2009, 2010 and 2011. The award is given to the person or persons who have done the most to promote chess in the U.S. each year.